1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to vending machines. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method and apparatus for automatically controlling a vending machine to enable a combination of products to be sold during a single transaction.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is believed that the first modern vending machine was installed in the late 1880s. The first vending machines were rudimentary devices primarily designed to dispense cigarettes and postcards. Modern vending machines are employed to store and dispense a vast array of merchandise in response to a customer request and appropriate payment. Such merchandise includes drinks, candy, frozen deserts, snacks, video tapes and children""s toys.
Many entrepreneurs are attracted to the basic concept of selling products using a vending machine. Vending machines are generally considered to have significant advantages over traditional merchandising. Specifically, vending machines enable the automated sale of merchandise at unconventional locations and times, and they do not require sales personnel to bring about sales.
Although the basic advantages of vending machines are significant, prior art vending machines have several disadvantages when compared to traditional merchandising, particularly relating to inventory control and pricing. With respect to inventory control, a first disadvantage is the difficulty of selling or xe2x80x9cturning overxe2x80x9d an inventory of low demand items or items of inferior quality. Although some vending machine suppliers offer to buy back inventory from operators who no longer want to sell certain products, such suppliers often fail to live up to their offer when an operator tries to exercise this option.
Some inventions have attempted to improve inventory turnover by providing a vending machine that provides incentives for customers to buy larger quantities of a product. One such invention is disclosed by King et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 4,498,570. King discloses a vending machine having a switching device for establishing a first price for a first item of a product sold and for establishing a second price for additional items of the product sold in the same transaction. Essentially, the King invention provides a quantity discount by allowing the purchaser to freely select the number of items to be purchased.
Levasseur et al. also disclose an apparatus that enables quantity discounts for vending machines in U.S. Pat. No. 4,008,792. Levasseur et al. disclose a control circuit for a vending machine which enables a vending machine offering a variety of products at a variety of prices to calculate a different price for a particular product based on the quantity of the product purchased. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,679,150, Hayashi et al. disclose an automatic vending machine that enables the purchase of a product at a quantity discount.
The inventions of King, Levasseur and Hayashi advanced the art by providing various means that enable a customer to purchase a product at a quantity discount. This advancement may advantageously encourage additional purchases of an item at a vending machine, but they are likely to affect only customers who can utilize multiple units of the same product. Further, these inventions do not address the broader problem of improving sales of a low demand product.
Other attempts to address the disadvantages associated with inventory control include inventory analysis products that employ a proactive approach. These products assist operators in deciding what products to stock, when to restock and at what quantities. Still other attempts to address inventory control problems include systems that enable operators to remotely monitor inventory and remotely retrieve sales data, such as the system described by U.S. Pat. No. 4,412,292.
With respect to price management, a second disadvantage is the difficulty of selling a product for a price commensurate with the product""s demand. Although conventional vending machines allow an operator to adjust the prices of products, price adjustments are not automatic, and they are readily evident to purchasers which may adversely affect the product""s demand.
Some operators have addressed the price management problems by selling complementary products, such as chips and soda, from the same machine. By selling complementary products, operators hope to passively induce consumers to purchase lower demand products, as certain snacks may be, by placing them in proximity to higher demand products, as certain sodas may be. Operators may also use this technique to indirectly pair highly profitable products with less profitable ones. The passive nature of this technique, however, is a significant problem. Because vending machines, by their nature, do not employ sales personnel, customers presently are not actively induced to purchase low demand or perishable products.
A need therefore exists for a method and apparatus that addresses the deficiencies of the prior art. Specifically, a need exists for a vending method and apparatus that actively promotes the sale of low demand, perishable and less profitable products. Accordingly, the shortcomings associated with the related art have heretofore not been adequately addressed. The present invention addresses such problems by providing an apparatus and processing approach that have not previously been proposed.
An object of the present invention is to enable a vending machine to sell multiple products for a single price. A feature of the present invention is to enable a vending machine to employ marketing techniques for promoting and selling complementary products.
An advantage of the present invention is that it enables a vending machine operator to adjust a product""s price as part of a package without affecting the individual sale price of the product. Another advantage of the present invention is that it enables a vending machine to actively promote the sale of low demand and perishable products by offering packages combining such products with complementary high-demand products. Yet another advantage of the present invention is that it enables a vending machine to provide a discount to a consumer for combined product purchases.
According to the present invention, a method and apparatus are disclosed for automatically delivering units of a combination of component products during a single transaction. The method includes the step of receiving a package identifier. The method further includes the step of identifying the component products corresponding to the package identifier. The method also includes the step of determining a package price corresponding to the package of component products. The method still further includes the steps of outputting a signal representing the package price, and outputting a signal representing a request to dispense a unit of each identified product.
The above object, feature and advantages and other objects, features and advantages are readily apparent from the detailed description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.